UAB stuns Iowa State for 1st Madness upset
Well, it didn't take long to get the first upset of the 2015 NCAA tournament. Fourteenth-seeded UAB upended the South Region's No. 3, Iowa State, with a 60-59 victory in the second game played Thursday.
Junior guard Robert Brown led the way for the Blazers with 21 points, while William Lee chipped in a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds.
UAB trailed 57-56 before Lee drilled the go-ahead bucket with 26 seconds left. After Lee kept Georges Niang from putting the Cyclones back on top, Lee extended the lead to three with a pair from the charity stripe. Naz Long missed a game-tying 3-pointer and Monte Morris's late tip-in was not enough to save Iowa State.
The Blazers went on a serious drought late, scoring just two points over a nearly six-minute span until Lee hit a layup with just over a minute and a half to go before finding their game in the end. It was the first tournament victory for UAB, the youngest squad in the 68-team field, since 2005.
It's a disappointingly early end for an Iowa State team that had visions of a deep tournament run. Jameel McKay did all he could with 10 points, 12 boards and six thunderous blocks.
Leading-scorer Niang, who missed last year's run to the Sweet 16 due to injury, had an off day. After getting into early foul trouble, the junior forward managed 11 points on a woeful 4-of-15 from the field and was never able to get comfortable on the court.
The Blazers will meet the winner of the UCLA on Saturday.